Tuckers73 said:
I had not appreciated the ongoing backwards looking nature.... obvious but I keep thinking in 5 year reoccurring blocks and that's not the case... the 5 years roll behind me every day if I understood correctly now.
It may appear that
Rob_TO and I disagree about this. This is indeed the way it works. (I suspect the observation by
Rob_TO, "It doesn't work that way," was more about other parts of your post.)
But in any event, yes, the "5 years roll behind [you] every day."
Tuckers73 said:
So in the event that my pr card expires say on Dec 2017 and I haven't quite done my days I just wait until I have done them in the backwards 5 year period and then reapply for renewal?
Yes,
as long as you are in Canada, you can wait, and should wait.
Note: technically 730 days in five years meets the PR RO. But
cutting-it-close has risks. After all, the PR must be able to actually prove at least 730 days in Canada, and if the PR is
cutting-it-close, for any days not definitively established to be in Canada, then the PR runs the risk that IRCC will infer those days were spent where the PR usually was, as in outside Canada. The mistake many make is to put too much emphasis on inferring that days between a last reported entry into Canada and the next reported date of exit were days in Canada. For the PR who is
cutting-it-close, there is a real risk of not getting the benefit of any such inference.
Tuckers73 said:
I travelled a lot for work in the early part of the current 5 year span hense the question.
Not sure how this adds up for you, but to be clear: if you have been outside Canada for more than 1095 days since January 4, 2012, you are currently in breach of the PR RO. If so, you would be at risk for being reported anytime you interact with CBSA or IRCC.
For example, if you have been outside Canada for 1095 or more days since January 4, 2012 and you are currently outside Canada, you could be reported and issued a Departure Order the next time you arrive at a Canadian PoE.
If you come and go frequently and are returning after a short time outside Canada, the risk of being examined pursuant to the PR RO, upon arrival, may be relatively low. But if you are not in current compliance on the day you arrive at a PoE, you are nonetheless at risk of being reported. And CBSA and IRCC are continuously upgrading technology and record-gathering and record-keeping, and automated alert systems, so there will tend to be a higher risk of being reported going forward despite frequent travel.
Having a valid PR card in possession, when arriving at a PoE, does not override being in breach of the ongoing PR RO.
Tuckers73 said:
And if I have to travel after the card expires I get a PR travel card until the RO is met which shouldn't be much longer but just covering all potentials...
If you are abroad without a valid PR card, you will need to apply for and obtain a PR Travel Document. You will need to show, in the application, that you are in compliance with the PR RO. If you are not in compliance with the PR RO, H&C reasons should be considered, but the weight given reasons based on business tends to not help much; bottom-line, if you are abroad and need a PR TD (due to expired PR card or to losing your PR card), there is a high risk of being denied and losing PR status unless you can establish you are in compliance with the PR RO.
There is no formal or official statement as such, but it is my strong impression that that the longer a person has been a PR, the less forgiving CBSA and IRCC are with PRs who spend more time abroad than in Canada, and indeed, perhaps the more overtly strict they are in how they apply and enforce the PR RO.
